Let's get real, marriage is a business.

[Warrior74]

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/CollegeAndFamily/LoveAndMoney/GetRealMarriageIsABusiness.aspx

The median net worth of married-couple households in the latest Census Bureau wealth study, conducted in 2002, was $101,975. For single men, median wealth was $23,700. For single women, $20,217.

* A 15-year study of 9,000 people found that during that time, people who married and stayed married built up nearly twice the net worth of people who stayed single. Even when all other factors are held constant -- stuff like income and education -- just the fact that they were married contributed to a 4% annual rise in these couples' wealth.

* Wealth declines typically started four years before a divorce was final, and the breakup ultimately reduced the typical person's net worth by 77% of that of the average single person.

 

[Poonani Maker]

Even though I'm getting older and still look bada5s, it's stories like this that make me want to stay single forever, as long as I can keep pulling $100,o00 annually.

 

[Von_S]

Yeah of course they left out the part where when you get a divorce she get half. The next time you think about getting married, look how much money Michael Jordan had to payout to his ex wife.

 

[zekko]

Yeah of course they left out the part where when you get a divorce she get half.

Then again if she makes as much as you do, or more, then you can look as it as you get half. Unless there are children involved, in which case you are hosed.

When I got divorced, my wife didn't make as much as I did, so I definitely had some losses. I still think it was worth it for the life experience. The way I looked at marriage was I would try it once. Live and learn. Now I'm living with my LTR. I may marry her at some point way down the road but I'll probably want a prenup. I'm getting to old to start over.

I imagine in most cases the guy makes more than the woman? Just because that's the traditional role and women like to marry up. That may be changing with the new economy though. I think I remember hearing that something like 70 or 80% of the job losses in this recession were in male oriented positions.

 

[squirrels]

Ask the typical married couple how wealthy they FEEL. How much of that 'wealth' they actually are capable of leveraging to improve their quality of life. See if you don't get a radically different answer.

Marriage doesn't LEAD to an increase in income. An increase in income leads the typical person to consider marriage, now that their other "needs" are taken care of. This is a classic case of a sh!tty newspaper/magazine/website with a slow news-day turning a correlation-study into an indication of causation.

Married people may typically have more "wealth". They also consume more. It all evens out. I've never known a married couple who has "money to burn".

 

[Von_S]

They're talking about overall net worth which in this case includes the value of the house. As a single guy making a very good salary trying to buy a house in a major city, I can tell you its a pain in the ass.

If I was married and my wife made half what I make, home buying would be so much easier. If you remove the house factor (which you'll probably lose in the divorce anyway) your net worth as a couple goes down. Throw in things like cars (depreciating assets), kids and all their bullsh*t, "family" vacations (seriously what single guy wants to go spend 5k or more at Walt Disney World?) and your net worth is even lower.

I'm single, I make a great salary and I'm good with money; I GUARANTEE you I have more money in the bank and in my retirement accounts AND less debt (they don't talk about your wife opening credit accounts at every department store in town) than more than 60% of married couples in this country.

These type of articles are just geared toward making women even more zealous about marriage, and so they can show their boyfriends "look we'll be rich if we get married honey ohhh I love you so much".

IF I get married there's no way its happening with out a prenup that would make Donald Trump blush, I've made it too far to just hand over half of what I've earned because someone changed their mind.

 

[Warrior74]

Yeah of course they left out the part where when you get a divorce she get half.

* Wealth declines typically started four years before a divorce was final, and the breakup ultimately reduced the typical person's net worth by 77% of that of the average single person.

Divorced people end up doing worse than single people.

 

[sodbuster]

Don't know if I believe the Divorced people make less statement. OK, I'm more tired now-bars take time;but, Not having the stess at home means I'm happier-which HAS translated into increased income[since pre-divorce]

 

[Warrior74]

yes because one persons experience invalidates a study which compensates for variations in results and gives an overall trend. Jesus you guys. LOL.

 

[Jitterbug]

Marriage: couple accumulate wealth.
Divorce: couple are worse off than singles.

Wealth created doesn't just vanish into thin air, so the conclusion: there's a wealth transfer from the formerly married couple to the good people who make sure there are enough marriages around for their industry to exist, but enough divorces that they get the share of the big pie too.

It is indeed a business!

 

[sodbuster]

OK, I guess I didn't make my point clear enough. If the man is happier in divorce than he was in marriage,then I think he will continue to make the same money or make more than he did before. For the man who thinks he isn't complete without his "soulmate",maybe depression will affect job performance.

I had always assumed that the same men who were run over in marriage would blossom with their new found freedom-may be more co-dependant men than I thought.

MY lawyer cost me about $10,000 for the divorce,not sure what hers cost her. Spent about another 10 in furniture[not a great investment on the financial balance sheet]. SO maybe 40k between the 2 of us spent on stuff that looks like a total loss[I'm set on furniture for a few years]That may be the difference in "wealth" stated. Hard for the average guy to make up the difference quickly. Supposedly it takes the average man 2 years to make up the standard of living after a divorce. The average woman-10? or so.

 

[seth03]

OK, I guess I didn't make my point clear enough. If the man is happier in divorce than he was in marriage,then I think he will continue to make the same money or make more than he did before. For the man who thinks he isn't complete without his "soulmate",maybe depression will affect job performance.

I had always assumed that the same men who were run over in marriage would blossom with their new found freedom-may be more co-dependant men than I thought.

MY lawyer cost me about $10,000 for the divorce,not sure what hers cost her. Spent about another 10 in furniture[not a great investment on the financial balance sheet]. SO maybe 40k between the 2 of us spent on stuff that looks like a total loss[I'm set on furniture for a few years]That may be the difference in "wealth" stated. Hard for the average guy to make up the difference quickly. Supposedly it takes the average man 2 years to make up the standard of living after a divorce. The average woman-10? or so.

ummmmmmmmm what about the loss of half the assets, alimony and child support payments that occur with the majority of divorces?

 

[sodbuster]

I read the survey, they corrected for the house and age of the individual,but I don't know if they corrected for the halving of the assets-probably not,be too much work for the government to have to find the spouse and add back the assets to see if the 2 divorced parents would add up to as much as before the split. Good point seth03, OUR joint assets qould be about 300k higher than My assets alone

 

[brokenupinside]

ALL the divorce laws and marriage laws have to be taken down.
You leave a marriage with what you had or have,by that I mean,you work during the marriage and you have a personal savings it's yours,you had a house form before,it's yours,you buy a house together and the payments are being made jointly,you split it,if you bought it together but only I make payments(proven by check stubs etc)it's mine.When you decide to leave you get on your own car and drive off if not call a cab.
The rest of the little things like who bought the last roast does not count.
If you pay for gas to drive across country without asking for half does not count,I mean people do things for others all the time.

Kids..... complicates things a little but a similar solution can be found.

 

[mrRuckus]

They calculate net worth in funny ways.

Owning a bunch of furniture and other money sucking things like cars gets counted up in your net worth. But it's money you really don't really have even if you sell the junk.

You can have all kinds of junk, have a high net worth, and still have no money.

Your real worth is what cash, stocks, bonds and other money generating assets you have, which you probably haven't much of if you're playing house with some girl who likely has 0 amount of financial sense and just wants pretty furniture no on ever uses, a big house, and a "cute" car to impress her friends with her quaint little family life she ultimately won't be responsible for because you make more than her.

I guarantee i have a ton more real assets and cash than most married couples even if they have the same job as me and 2 incomes and probably have worked 10-15 years longer. People are HORRIBLE with cash. I've never even paid a nickel of interest on a credit card.

Sticking your money into the stock market and other things like that rather than flushing it down the drain with children and a house too large for you will probably make you far wealthier than 90% of married couples who have nothing but bills and interest payments rather than assets that earn you more money. Be damned any notion of "net worth" that means about nothing.